Feeling rather bored with life, Donkey Kong, Nintendo's 900-pound gorilla, breaks into a toy factory and steals a shipment of mechanical Mario dolls. To return the dolls, players must help Mario chase the big ape through 40 single-screen levels of chutes and ladders.
In truth, "Mario vs. Donkey Kong," a new game for the Game Boy Advance, is the spiritual heir of neither Nintendo's famous Mario Bros." adventures nor of the 1980 "Donkey Kong" arcade game. Those classics required timing and reflexes. "Mario vs. Donkey Kong" is mostly about puzzles.
"MVD" has all of the cosmetic trappings of a "Super Mario Bros." adventure. It has the fire-spitting piranha plants, the giant blocks of rock that try to crush Mario, the shy Theresa ghosts and the walking bombs.